The Reasons Why
by xX.That Kid Has Got.Xx
Summary: Sora is an author. Sora has writer's block. Sora sees no way out. Then Riku decides that teenage angst and high school drama are the answers! Sora/Axel.
1. Writer's Block

IMPORTANT A/N: Or maybe not extremely important… well, it is to us, the authors. That's right. "Us." "Authors." If you haven't guessed yet, this is a joint fic between Sammie and Trisha. This is Sammie :) We're super excited, this being our first joint fic together. We have very different styles of writing, so if you see the styles switch a bit within a chapter, it's probably because the other took over. So while reading this fic, just keep in mind that this was masterminded by TWO people! Thanks! :D

* * *

He couldn't believe it.

He simply could not believe it.

Unfortunately, he lacked another option.

Quickly, he rifled through every corner of his mind, searching with urgency. He pried, looked, and prayed – nothing. His brain had only produced a mirror image of the sight that presented itself before him.

A painfully blank computer screen.

Panic and confusion swept over him as he tried again. He found nothing more than a rather firm wall and no matter how much his mind pushed, it didn't look as if it would be budging. Behind it lay colorful words and interesting plotlines, complex characters and beautiful, detailed locations. But there was just no getting around that freaking blockage in his brain. He kicked the mental wall with as much force as his tiny, inner self could muster.

He groaned and sat back in his chair, his blue eyes darting around the screen as if inspiration itself would materialize if he stared hard enough. Forming a simple sentence had never been such a difficult task before. Yet, quite suddenly, the words seemed to evade his grasp.

He glared at the letters on his keyboard until they swirled together and started forming their own words without his assistance. Words like, "failure" and "loser" appeared. And he could have sworn he saw "douche bag" at one point. His writer's block was starting to mess with him… He had obviously been alone with his computer for too long.

Without hesitation, he whipped out his cell phone, hurriedly punched in a number, then pressed the phone to his ear. One ring, two rings, three… finally, an answer.

"Sora!" The loud greeting caught him by surprise, causing him to fumble with the phone as he tried to hold onto it. "About time you called…"

"Look, I'm sorry I didn't get to you before, but I –"

"Don't stress, it's not a big deal; I'm just messing with you." Sora could clearly hear the ever-present grin that was likely plastered on his agent's face. "So, have you finished the first two chapters? The editor is anxious to get to work on checking them over. You know how OCD she is about her job." Again, Sora knew that an amused smile was playing on the speaker's lips.

"Well, I started working on them, but –"

"Oh, and that reminds me! A few of the critics are looking for excerpts from those first chapters you're writing, along with a summary of the novel." Sora's stomach dropped as the offending words continued to spill out from his cell phone's little speaker. "We can always BS the synopsis; they'd take anything and think it sounded like a piece of poetry. But the only one with access to the story itself is you. So, you think you could fork over the chapters soon? The critics are waiting…"

"I would love to give them to you, but –"

"Oh, and by the way, I set up a few interviews for you with some interested news stations. Everybody's wondering how this novel's going to go and –"

"For the love of all that is pure, I haven't written anything!"

A heavy silence began to press upon the call. Even in Sora's hand, the phone felt like it was becoming increasingly weighty, pulled down only by the sudden outburst.

"…Nothing…?" The question hung in the air before he finished it. "You… haven't written anything at all for this novel?"

"No," he said, shame dripping from his voice.

"But I had you work on it for three weeks! And then I busted my ass to get that extension you wanted. And you're telling me that there's _nothing_?"

Sora pulled the phone away from his ear until the sound of shouting died away. He hesitantly drew his cell back to himself, hoping further injuries to his eardrums could be avoided.

"Look, I totally meant to have those chapters done. Honest! But my mind has just… died." Sora sighed, unable to hide his feelings of defeat. "I can't pull anything out anymore. I don't know what's wrong… It's been like this for weeks and I don't know what else to do!"

"…You're an idiot."

"Wha…?"

"You made it sound like you were dying. You're not. It's just writer's block. It happens. It's a bit inconvenient, yeah, but there's nothing we can do, really."

Sora made a face, though the voice on the other end obviously couldn't see it. "Nothing at all to help?"

Silence returned as his mind began to rack their depths for a solution. The silence deepened. And then, one mind had a breakthrough.

"You need a break."

"A break? That's your idea?" Sora asked, uncertain.

"Oh no. It's _the_ idea. And it's brilliant."

"Perhaps a little less than that."

"Ouch. Is there a receipt for that hurtful comment? I'd like to return it." Sora scoffed, but listened. "Look, all you need is a chance to recharge your batteries. Get your brain jumpstarted. And the best way to do that?" The pause provided for an answer was short-lived. "By stepping away from the work."

Sora loosened his grip on the phone. Take a break? What was he supposed to do? The last few years of his life had revolved almost solely around his writing. To others, he became a semi-permanent fixture in front of his computer screen, on the green bench on the west side of the park, and in the corner table of the Paopu Café. Always scribbling away in a notebook, always nibbling on the eraser end of a pencil, his brow always wrinkled in thought. Rarely did anyone ever see Sora Aoi at a time when he wasn't writing… Until they watched him on his book tour. Any person could sense the high level of joy that radiated from him as he would read a small part of his latest book. Nobody could deny the bright smile he would share when he would sign one of the bank pages in front of said book for a supportive fan. And anybody with half a brain could see that same friendly face he gave was returned to him.

Sora loved being around people. The noise, the bustle, the utter insanity. If he could surround himself by that sort of mess all the time, he believed he would have a great way to kill some time.

"Well, what am I supposed to do now? I lack a social life. At least recently."

"And that's why your writing suffers! You've forgotten what it feels like to be around people – real people – and how reality works." But he was wrong. Sora could never forget the kind of energy that surrounded him, or the squeals of, "Oh, Mr. Aoi, could you please sign my copy?"

"You have to re-learn how interesting life is, Sora. And you'll be better off for it. And so will this nonexistent novel."

"So what do you suggest? I hit up bars and sleep with people who MIGHT be women?"

"Don't be stupid," was the reply. "You're not allowed in a bar yet. Do you forget that you're only twenty?"

"But I can still sleep with women?" He paused. "And people who might be women?"

A sigh through the telephone line. "You don't like girls, Sora… You're being immature."

"Well, I'm distressed! Sorry I can't drown my sorrows in alcohol. I'm underage!" Sora pouted, emphasizing his point to someone who would never notice. But he heard a gasp. Maybe they could see it.

"…That's it!"

"What's it?"

"You're gonna go back to school!"

"_Excuse me_…?"


	2. Day One

"I don't think I can do this." The man stared anxiously at the front of the building, where kids of varying ages were flocking through the doors chatting with their friends, as he pressed his cell phone to his ear, clutching it desperately.

"Are you kidding me, Sora?" The voice on the other end of the line mocked him, obviously trying to hold back a chuckle. "It's high school. You are surrounded by a bunch of prepubescent kids with acne and inhalers. How is that scary?"

Sora's eyes widened as he whispered harshly, so as not to draw attention to himself, "I am _surrounded _by kids! How is that _not_ scary?" Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he continued, "Listen, I know I agreed to this whole, 'back-to-school' thing, but did it have to be such a… _public _public school? I mean, what if someone recognizes me, Riku?"

Sighing, Riku reassured him, for what seemed to be the millionth time, "Nobody will recognize you. You have a new name, and a completely new look. You. Will. Be. Fine." He emphasized each word, wondering why the novelist was so determined to make the worst of his situation.

"A completely new look? Riku, I've got some temporary black hair dye, green contacts, and a new shirt. Does that really qualify as new?

"Well, if you had just gone with the outfits I recommended-"

Sora cut the man off before he could finish the offending statement. "The outfits you recommended consisted heavily of tight tee shirts and leather pants."

"Hey, the pants looked good, okay?"

"Yeah, okay. And I'm sure the chafing was absolutely nothing to worry about." Sora rolled his eyes and leaned against the brick wall of the building, and then promptly jumped away from it when the warning bell rang.

Riku chuckled and stated, "Sounds like your big day's about to start." Sora began to stutter his protest when the older man cut him off, saying, "Listen, Sora - I mean, _Sky - _I know that you have basically zero social skills, and almost no friends outside of me. Trust me, I know." Sora took offense to the slight until he realized that it was completely true, and continued to listen quietly. "But this will be good for your career. Which, in turn, is good for my career. Which means that you have virtually no choice in the matter. So time to put on your big boy pants, because it's time for your first day of high school. Again."

Sora sighed, realizing that there was no way out of this. He was a twenty year old man, entering his Junior year of high school. Pathetic? Oh, yes. Depressing? Extremely. Avoidable? …Seemingly not. Riku was a number of things. He was Sora's best friend, a terrible metro sexual (as could be proved by Sora's chafe marks), an amazing agent, and the last, not very well-known fact about him, was that he was an evil, evil man. Who Sora was just a bit frightened of. All of this being accounted for, there was really only one thing left for Sora to say.

"You are an awful best friend. You know that, right?"

"I do what I can. Go get 'em, Sky."

And with that, the line went dead, and Sora was left to glance at his schedule before rushing into the building with the rest of the kids. Sora Aoi, renowned novelist, was gone, and in his place was Sky Atari, just another face in the hallways of Twilight High.

Scratch that. He was a face who had no idea where he was going in the hallways of Twilight High. He stopped once inside of the building, by the main office, reading his schedule.

_Locker Number: 2505 // Locker Combination: 6-24-42_

_Period 1: *World History H // RM. 1560 // Mr. Itami_

Great. Now, if only he could find out where that was…

The school was enormous. The main entrance alone consisted of the main, guidance, and attendance offices, as well as the nurse's station, within a rotunda. Long, tiled hallways extended to each side, with even more hallways branching off of those. Needless to say, he needed to stop for directions.

He walked over to the main office and waited patiently behind a small blond boy who had already been waiting. Sora inspected him curiously as he tapped his foot impatiently, obviously anxious to leave. The woman behind the desk, however, made no effort to hasten her work.

The boy looked to be about fourteen or fifteen. His petite form was clothed in baggy khaki pants with a plain black tee shirt and black sneakers. A small, silver chain hung around his neck and he sported a checkered wristband as well as two garish rings, one black and one white. He didn't seem to be carrying any books at all, as opposed to the backpack full to the breaking point of textbooks and notebooks on Sora's back.

Sora looked down at his own old faded jeans and _Simple Plan_ shirt and sighed, feeling severely out of place. Noticing his presence for the first time, the blond boy turned. He had bright blue eyes, which, Sora realized, would be quite similar to his own, if he hadn't been wearing green contacts. His unkempt blond hair stuck out in many various directions, and when the boy grinned, Sora started, realizing how similar they were in appearances, without his disguise.

"You're new," the boy stated, looking excited.

Sora nodded, not quite sure how to deal with such enthusiasm from the perfect stranger.

"My name's Roxas. I'm a senior. How about you?" He introduced himself, holding out his hand towards Sora.

Sora blinked dumbly, unable to believe that the small boy in front of him was actually seventeen or eighteen years old, forgetting for the moment that he was twenty, and only had a few inches on Roxas.

"I'm So - Um, Sky. Sky Atari." Sora shook Roxas' hand. "I'm a Junior. Nice to meet you." This wasn't so bad, Sora reasoned. Kind of like meeting one of his fans, or meeting with some talk show host. He could handle this, he assured himself. He could.

The woman behind the desk interrupted, clearing her throat to get their attention. Roxas turned to her quickly, looking hopeful. She held out a paper to him, and he snatched it up, ignoring her glare. A smile spread across his face as he looked at the paper, and he rolled his eyes.

"Finally," he mumbled under his breath, and then gave his thanks to the extremely unhappy secretary in the main office. Looking back up to Sora, he explained, "I always lose my schedule before the first day of school. And the secretaries all take forever to print out a new one for me." He laughed, and continued, "It's practically tradition."

Sora grinned, deciding that he kind of liked the boy. He hoped they would get the chance to become friends in the future. Lord knows he would need some friends in this place.

Roxas shook his head, and then he stopped laughing abruptly. "Oh boy," he realized, "we're going to be _so_ late. Do you even know where your classroom is?"

"No idea," Sora sighed.

Roxas looked thoughtful for a moment before a mischievous grin spread across his face once more. "I'll take you to your class! Your teacher will probably give me a pass to my class since I was helping out the new kid!"

"Um, okay. Thanks, I think?" Sora nodded, not quite sure if he should be offended that Roxas was only helping him out to get a hall pass. He looked at his schedule once more, and declared, "My locker is number 2505, and I'm in room 1560, for World History."

"Not a problem." Roxas walked away, looking more confident in the school than Sora thought he would ever be. "Let's go, Sky," he called, beckoning him from a few feet ahead.

Sora looked around, confused, before realizing that Roxas was talking to him. Sky. Huh… That would take some getting used to, he supposed. He nodded and smiled, scrambling to catch up to his first acquaintance.

The two walked on through the halls, Roxas reading the numbers on the lockers, and Sora trailing behind, his body heavy beneath the weight of his backpack. Luckily, he wasn't forced to endure the extra load for too long. Roxas soon directed Sora to his locker, where he quickly shoved as many items as he could. His attempt at quickness only resulted in an assortment of pencils, pens, and binders falling out and scattering on the cold floor. He stared at the mess for a moment, then glanced over at Roxas, who was looking off in another direction. After a few moments, Roxas turned back to the flailing new student. His eyes widened.

"Do you...need help?"

Sora peered at his locker, then the floor, then Roxas. "...Yeah... That... That'd be great." He hesitated and gave a sheepish grin. Roxas returned it, then stooped down to help gather Sora's belongings.

"Sorry I didn't jump in right away," he said while picking up a few pieces of looseleaf paper. "I was trying to do you a favor. I figured if you didn't know I was watching you crash and burn, you wouldn't feel so awkward."

Sora reached for his pens, but stopped. " 'Crash and burn'?"

Roxas's smile grew. "If only you had seen yourself a few moments ago. No deer in headlights has anything on you." Sora soon found himself chuckling lightly at the visual. The two cleaned up the rest of the spilled items, and were soon on their way.

The hallways seemed to extend forever, the seemingly never-ending rows of lockers and closed doors lengthening the space. Sora's eyes flitted from one side to the other. Back when he had been in school, the building had never been so large, nor had there been so many teenagers. The angst in the air was palpable. And if that be so, he was sure that his fear was just as noticeable. He swallowed, though his mouth was dry, and continued to follow Roxas through the school's maze.

A few minutes in, Sora surveyed the slowly dwindling crowds and realized something wonderful: Nobody was glaring at him. Nobody was pointing at him with disgusted looks on their faces. Nobody sneered at his presence. He truly was unrecognizable...and more or less unimportant to the self-concerned masses around him. A small smile found a place on his face, and he began to casually people-watch. So many different kinds, and all with their own stories. Sora couldn't help but want to revel in the unfamiliarity.

"Here we are!"

Sora stopped suddenly, and so did his wandering thoughts. "Here...?"

Roxas raised an eyebrow. "Your classroom."

"Oh!" Sora pulled an awkward smile again. "Right. Thanks."

"No problem." He wrapped an arm around Sora's shoulders. "And think of it this way: You get to spend the next forty minutes sitting down. In a chair. Where you can't make a mess of anything." He removed his arm and patted Sora on the back. "So just relax, all right?" Sora nodded slowly as Roxas opened the classroom door.

"Besides, it's just high school." Roxas entered the class, Sora following close behind.

Sounds assaulted his ears. Some yelling, some giggling, others complaining about their favorite television show getting cancelled, and even more recounting tales of their various escapades with So-and-So, So-and-So's hot cousin, and So-and-So's hot cousin's dog, GiGi.

Despite the noise, Sora noticed that as he and Roxas walked in, heads began to turn in their direction. Sora was noticing them...taking notice of him. He squirmed slightly.

Teenagers had never looked so vicious.

"Kids, shush! You're scaring the newbie." Sora whipped his head in the direction of the voice. A tall man stood, his hair pulled back and streaked black and grey. A large scar ran down his left cheek, and he had a smirk on his lips. "It's Mr. Itami." He looked Sora up and down.

Sora blinked a few times before replying. "I'm - "

"New?"

"S...Sky. Atari."

"New. I was right."

"Uh...."

"Yeah?"

"You...have an eye-patch."

"Uh, yeah. Is that a problem?" Sora shook his head. Mr. Itami turned and walked back to his desk. "Well, Sky... Make yourself comfortable. We don't bite." He smiled, but Sora didn't trust him. Not entirely.

"Uhm...how about I meet up with you after class, Sky?" Sora nodded in response, perhaps too quickly, and Roxas made his way out of the room. He also seemed to miss a few flirty waves from various females in the class.

Sora did a hurried search, found an empty seat, and plopped himself down. Make yourself comfortable, Mr. Itami had said. Sora knew better.

"You know Roxas?" Sora did a double take to be sure this blonde girl was talking to him. She was.

"Not really... We just met. He helped me find my class and locker and everything...."

"Oh, that's cool." The girl had a sort of wistful look on her face. "Roxas has always been really friendly like that. He helped me on my first day, too." She seemed to drift off into her own musings before suddenly returning to the present. "Oh, yeah. My name's Namine."

"Sky."

"Nice to meet you, Sky." Her tone was warm and genial, and Sora found himself relaxing somewhat.

Namine then quickly rummaged through a small case on her desk, pulled out a black and white striped pen, and placed it on Sora's desk. He looked at it questioningly.

She laughed. "Sorry. I should explain. See, when I was younger, I had trouble making friends. So, I'd offer up the pretty pens and pencils I brought to school, and trade them for others. I know it sounds silly, but it kind of worked. I still do it now when I meet someone new."

Sora watched her for a moment, then pulled his own plain pen out of one of his pockets. He dropped it into her hand with a smile.

"Good, good." The two shared a moment before hearing Mr. Itami clap his hands loudly.

"All right, kiddies. Time to dive into this thing." A student raised her hand. "Yuna?"

"Mr. Itami, are we going to go over the course material?"

He snickered. "Hah. As if." He then strolled to the other side of the room and began to lecture his class on the wonders of the world and all the old people involved in its past.

As promised, when the class ended, Roxas met Sora just outside the room's door. And, like any good guide, he brought Sora to his next class.

Roxas held Sora's schedule in his hands. "AP English, huh?"

"Yeah...." Sora rubbed the back of his head. "My best subject, really."

"Nice." Roxas looked closer. "AP English...with Mr. Sasaki?" He began to laugh intensely, and returned the paper to Sora's hands. "Okay, maybe not so nice."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll see."

The pair walked side by side, neither talking much, but surrounded with a rather agreeable sort of atmosphere. So far, so good. Sora's first day had only just begun, but it had yet to go terribly. Perhaps there was hope...?

"Here ya go." Roxas opened the door, and Sora immediately walked inside. He found the first empty desk and sat down. To his surprise, Roxas sat beside him. Sora looked at him, his face conveying confusion. The blond grinned. "You're not the only one who's good at English."

Sora watched as a black haired man with strips of grey stood at the front of the classroom, erasing the blackboard. He then went back to Roxas, whose eyes seemed to be searching the room. He finally stopped, and leaned back in his chair.

Suddenly, the teacher quickly turned around. "CLASS!" All the students jumped and stared. "YOU...are all my pupils." His head turned sharply to the left. "YOU...are in my classroom." He flipped to the right, his eyes appearing to be burning holes right into Sora. "And _YOU_...," he said with a twisted grin, "might one day be great...." He redirected his attention back to the center of the room. "But ONLY...if you follow my _EVERY_ direction." He leaned forward, becoming face-to-face with a student in the front row. "Do I make myself clear?" The student nodded nervously. Sora found himself shifting in his seat. The movement brought the teacher's gaze back to him. He froze.

"Good." Mr. Sasaki straightened up, then walked back to his desk. "NOW...we do roll call."

Roxas tipped himself toward Sora's desk, and whispered, "I told you..."

"SPEAK NOT, MR. SHIN!" The teacher's voice reverberated off the walls.

"I apologize, Mr. Sasaki - "

"CALL ME SENSEI!" His tense shoulders slackened, and he unclenched his fists. "Call me... Sensei."

"...Y-yes, Sensei."

Mr. Sasaki nodded, then cleared his throat. He began to call off names, and the students in turn raised their hands, or said "Here!" in response. Upon reaching Sora's name, the one in question hadn't responded right away.

"Atari?" The name lingered in the air for a bit, before Sora realized that, once again, that was him.

"Here! Here..."

"We'll see about that..." Sora did not understand what that meant, but he began to figure it was better not to ask. Mr. Sasaki continued on the list.

"Roxas...?" Sora began.

"Yes?"

"Why are we calling him Sensei...in an _ENGLISH_ class?"

"Good teacher... Weird ways."

"YOU TWO!"

"Yes, Sensei?" the boys replied hurriedly.

"Show me your knowledge." He watched them both. "Where's Kaji?"

"Kaji...?" Sora said, unsure.

"He's not here."

Mr. Sasaki leered. "Of course... He will never be great..." With that, he returned to roll call.

"Who's Kaji?"

"Last name. First's Axel."

"And he's not here?"

Roxas shrugged. "I'm his friend, not his babysitter."

"And Shin, we know your presence surrounds us..."

Roxas paused. "Uhm...yes...Sensei...?"

"Good. Then... we shall begin. I will teach you all you need to know to survive, force your opinions on others," he stopped for a moment. "And to not fail my class."

Sora and Roxas shared a look as the teacher continued on with his introductory speech.

---**x**---

"Don't worry. You won't have to experience the embarrassing 'First Lunch Period' where you either sit alone in the library, or sit with the outcasts without anyone telling you." Roxas said this with a grin, but Sora sensed a slight jab at his poor social skills.

Roxas winded through the hoards of teens and around tables until he finally found the one he was looking for. It was fairly empty, though the tables directly left and right of it had chatty students of their own. Sora walked up behind Roxas, but looked past him to the girl sitting there. She was staring at the table's surface, and her short black hair kept Sora from being able to see her face.

"Xion! Hey!" The girl's head lifted, her dark hair moving to reveal her blue eyes. She smiled upon recognizing her friend.

"Hi, Roxas." She quickly glanced over his shoulder to Sora. "Did you bring a friend?"

"You bet." Roxas stepped to the side. "Sky, this is Xion. Xion, Sky." Sora nodded, and Xion reciprocated. Roxas and Sora sat down opposite their female companion. Sora's attention span, however, caused him to slightly lose interest and take a look around the cafeteria.

"So, Sora?" Xion said. "Do you know anybody else here?"

"Mm... No. Just Roxas, and now you. Oh, and this girl, Namine."

"Namine? She's nice. Real sweetheart. Right, Roxas?"

He shot a strange look her way. "Yeah... She's good people."

"Roxas would know."

"What're you trying to say, Xion?"

"Nothin'. Just sayin'."

"I don't think I like what you're saying."

"Like you know what I'm talking about."

"Oh, I know! I know plenty!"

"Yeah, sure."

Sora continued to take in his surroundings while the two fell into a petty argument where neither really knew what they were fighting about. Most of the students were sitting and talking now, so he tried to be subtle. But someone was still standing, and as far as he could tell, that someone was headed straight for their table.

He focused on his bag lunch (he didn't want to be poisoned on his first day) as the person approached. He listened as Xion and Roxas allowed their bickering to drift, realizing that they had new company.

"Oh, hello. Are you new too?" Xion asked.

"Yes. First day and all. Couldn't find a table to sit at."

Roxas jumped in. "Oh, well, definitely sit with us! We have room." He gestured to an empty space next to Xion, across from Sora. Sora felt the table shift a bit as the newcomer settled into his spot.

"Thanks much. I would've hated to sit with bad company." He scoffed. "Or in the library." Sora felt his face grow warm.

"No problem," said Roxas. "Anyway, I'm Roxas. And this is Xion. And this is Sky." Sora raised his head, a smile on his face and his hand being lifted to give a small wave. But when his eyes focused on the person before him, the smile went a bit crooked and his arm became heavy.

Silver hair.

Aquamarine eyes.

And a smirk that could only belong to one truly terrible best friend.

"Ri...ku?" Riku gave a wink.

"Oh! Do you two know each other?" Roxas asked.

"Just a little," Riku answered. "Right, Sky?"

Sora blinked rapidly. "Uh...right. Right. Just a little."

"Well, then, that's great!" Xion said, smiling. "Looks like you know enough people now to not be considered friendless!" Sora nearly glared at her, but Xion continued to grin. Instead, he sent his death stare to the snarky individual that sat just across the table. Just close enough for him to get a good smack in the head...but too far for it to be considered an accident. Sora sighed. Riku winked yet again.

Sora shook his head, took a deep breath, and began to pretend as if he and Riku did not spend hours trying on leather pants together.

* * *

Author's Note: Okay, sorry we took so long. Like you guys, we have lives. Unlike you, we make it up with really long chapters! :D And just so you know... Riku was NOT supposed to be here. There was a major misunderstanding, and it turned into a rather epic mistake. And we just love Riku so much (and the fact that he's here in high school), that we decided to keep him. Hooray! Well, enjoy, and we'll see you in Chapter Three! :3


	3. Princess Plaything

Sora scowled.

Sora snarled.

Sora seethed.

The perfectly sharpened pencil in his hand tapped against the desk. His body tense, he wound up striking the surface at rapid-fire. Someone else in the classroom shushed him quiet. He exhaled, exasperated, and began to continue his swift beats on a page of his notebook.

"Sky? You okay?" Sora didn't turn to look at Roxas. Instead, he continued to glower at the empty lines and spaces of his paper. "Really, man?"

Sora continued to ignore him, stopping his drumming and quickly letting his pencil's tip scribble in the paper's margin. He doodled for a bit before pulling his hand away, and he stared at the picture, sizing it up. As crude as the illustration was, he found it rather fitting. He quickly scrawled a caption beneath it, and upon finishing, dropped his pencil with force.

"What's with the anger?"

"I'm not angry..." Sora kept his voice to a low grumble. "I'm just...a little peeved."

Roxas smirked. "Well, gee, if that's how you are when you get ticked off, I would hate to see you when you're pissed."

Sora moaned, folded his arms on his desk, and dropped his head. His first day had actually been going rather decently...

Things like this made him wonder if there was a God.

The study hall's end couldn't come fast enough. Sora had bolted out of the room after hurriedly picking up his books. He walked half the distance to his locker with Roxas before they went their own ways. Sora grabbed his things, along with the array of papers that he needed signed, and headed toward the doors, bumping into a number of other people on his way out.

Sora pushed through the exit, immediately seeing the large buses lined up. He started to walk towards the one he figured was his, but stopped as he caught sight of someone waving at him. He breathed out heavily, but made his way over. He slowed as he approached, his eyes staring icily at the one who had called him over, but curiously at the shiny red car behind him.

"...Did you buy this, or steal it?"

Riku gasped. "Why would I steal something?"

"Because you're cheap."

"And you're a terrible actor. As was seen during lunch." He gave a sly smile. "Thanks for nearly giving me away."

"Why the hell are you even here?"

The older boy shrugged. "Thought you might need some company. I was afraid that you - being you and all - might have taken to the social faux pas of secluding yourself from the rest of civilization. And nothing good would have come of that, so I figured I'd surprise you with my wonderful presence." He grinned widely. "Now you have three good friends...and one positively amazing one."

"Jesus Christ, Riku! Can you be serious for just two seconds?"

The smile disappeared. "I am _always_ serious, Sora."

"Then how could someone so serious _seriously_ think that this is a good idea? Showing up here, embarrassing me, making me look like an idiot in front of people I hardly know...."

Riku paused, running his fingers over the hood of his car as he leaned back on it. He looked off into the distance. "Okay. I'm sorry that I made you look bad. You've just been so nervous since I suggested this whole thing... I wanted to help." He focused on Sora again.

Sora studied Riku's face, noting the almost convincing apologetic look. The pair stared each other down until Riku threw up his arms. "Oh, come on, Sora! You're stuck with me for a while. What's the point in getting mad?"

"Whatever."

"What does a guy have to do to get a little forgiveness around here?" Riku grabbed Sora's shoulders, but Sora brushed him off coldly. Riku examined his demeanor before his attention was distracted. "Oh, why, hello there, Roxas." He smiled. "How are you?"

Roxas nodded, and Sora realized that they seemed to share an odd look. He didn't ask questions. Roxas turned to Sora. "So, the bus. You comin'?"

"Yeah, I...." Sora trailed off before staring right at Riku, beaming in a rather self-satisfied manner. "Actually... Riku here just offered up his services...and his vehicle." He grinned at Roxas. "I won't be needing the bus for the rest of the year, thanks to my good buddy here. Right, Riku?" The silver-haired one barely concealed a snort.

He shook his head and said slowly, "Yeah. I'll be drivin' Miss Daisy around for a while." He hesitated slightly, then gave Sora a pat on the shoulder. Roxas stood by, watching the odd exchange before him, then shrugged.

"Sweet. Well, enjoy the free transpo." He leaned in and whispered into Sora's ear, "See if you can get him to extend his generosity over to me. I might wanna borrow his car for a date or something...."

Riku jumped in, saying, "When you find someone willing to date you, then we'll talk. Otherwise, don't touch my car."

Roxas shoved his hands into his pockets and smiled politely. "Don't worry about it, Riku. I wouldn't want to damage your precious vehicle." He gave it a passing glance. "It really is nice, though. You know your cars."

Riku pushed himself off the hood, standing right in front of Roxas. "Well, there's one advantage you have over me: You can kiss my ass and I can't." Roxas chuckled, then said his goodbyes.

Once Roxas was out of earshot, Sora laughed. "Now you're forgiven."

"You are one sneaky person," Riku said, wagging an incriminating finger at him.

"And you're an ass." He walked toward the car door. "Come on. Let's go home."

"All right. But you're not allowed to touch the radio."

"Why not?"

Riku dug into his pocket, and pulled out a folded piece of paper. He unfolded it, flattened it out some on the front of his car, then held it up.

"Well, after Roxas showed me this in the hall, I fear having your hands anywhere near my side of the car." Sora peered at the paper, then smiled nervously.

"I...guess it fell out of my notebook... Heh."

There, between the college ruled lines, was a single note that read, " 'Riku's Personal Hell.' " Above the sentence was a graphite depiction of Riku being squeezed to death by what seemed to be a mix between a rather tight t-shirt and an anaconda.

To Sora, however, they were nearly one in the same.

-**x**-**x**-**x**-

"I can't believe I let you rope me into this whole thing..." Sora watched as the bright yellow lines on the dark road passed by him.

"You're still bitching about that?" Riku eyed him from his place in the driver's seat. "You've got to let it go sometime."

"I'll take my sweet time doing that then." He relaxed his muscles, seeming to almost melt into the seat. It had been a long, stressful day with one too many surprises for his own liking. All he wanted to do was find a way to a more soothing plane of thought. One where there were no random appearances by penny-pinching agents, or unusually loud and emphatic teachers, or awkward "You weren't supposed to see that picture" instances. Was it so much to ask for a moment of Zen?

"You know, Sora..."

Apparently, it was just too much to ask.

"...If you let it be, this whole high school experience might do you more good than you know."

"You'd say anything if it meant a commission in your pocket, Riku."

"Deny that, I won't. But really. Just take this into account." He turned one corner, then another. "The high school experience. Annoying, intriguing - it's whatever you make of it. And with high school comes the typical teenage mental upsets, the distressing sense of approaching social embarrassment, and the ever-substantial fear of being the freak on the outside looking in. Whether you'll admit it or not, the adolescent condition is all kinds of interesting, especially when you think of all the life lessons tied to those years. Like...learning to like who you are." Riku pulled up to a stoplight, then studied the younger boy, slouched in his place. "You could use a little...self-love."

Sora glared at him, his face twisted in disgust. "For the record, I do like myself."

"Do you?"

"I do." He leaned back against the car seat, his arms crossed. "I like myself, but just...as a friend."

Riku laughed. "Well, that's not good enough. You realize that your writing might be suffering because of your crap self-esteem?"

Sora looked at him solemnly, mulling over his words. "...But who needs self-esteem when you have self-respect?"

Riku remained quiet until he pulled up near Sora's apartment building. He parked the car, and turning to Sora, he explained, "You don't have any of that either."

Sora wished he could refute that statement.

---**x**---

Sora was awakened abruptly by the cell phone resting on the counter beside his bed. He groaned, using his fists to rub the sleep out of his bleary eyes, and glanced at the glowing red numbers on his clock before flipping open his phone.

"Riku, you better have a really good reason for waking me up at seven in the morning," he muttered angrily into the speaker.

Silence answered on the other end before Riku exclaimed, "I can't believe you're still in bed!"

Sora winced and held the shrieking device away from his ear. "Of course I am! It's seven o' clock! Why on earth would I be out of bed yet?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because we have to be at school in half an hour and I'm already in my car, on my way to get you?"

Sora shot up out of bed, flicking on the lights and rushing to his closet, and rummaged through his clothing with one hand while holding the phone to his ear with the other.

"Why didn't you wake me up earlier?" Sora demanded.

"Maybe I expected your 20-year-old ass to be responsible enough to remember that you are in high school now! Teenagers can remember. Why can't the legal adult?"

"Probably because I haven't been to school in four years! And it wasn't even my stupid idea to go back, was it?"

Riku sighed, and admitted his defeat. "Fine. Just know that you have about… five minutes to get ready, and if you aren't, we'll both be late." He hung up, and the line went dead.

Sora, who had managed to hop one leg into a pair of jeans, tumbled to the ground, and chucked the phone away from him. He pulled up the pants hurriedly before standing back up and grabbing a random shirt out of his closet and pulling it over his head. He shoved his sockless feet into a pair of sneakers and was pulling a comb through his tangled black hair when he heard the beeping of Riku's car from outside. He swore under his breath and ran outside to meet him, barely remembering to grab his book bag on the way out.

He sat down in the car and slumped into the seat, finally allowing himself to relax after his hectic morning.

Riku stared at him and stated, "You look like hell."

Turning his glare to the man behind the wheel, Sora spat, "Thanks for that."

Angrily, Riku slammed his hand down on the steering wheel and cussed.

Sora rolled his eyes and asked, "What now?"

"Blue, Sora. Blue!"

"Yes, Riku. My shirt is blue. Does that _upset_ you?"

"Not your shirt, you idiot. Your eyes! Where the hell are your contacts?"

"…Shit!"

**-x-x-x-**

Throughout Mr. Itami's particularly boring lecture on the class structure in feudal Japan, Sora reflected on the miracle that was his living through the tense car ride to the high school. He rested his head on his arms and closed his eyes for a moment. His body still hadn't been able to completely recover from that morning.

His eyes glazed over as he inspected Namine, who was scribbling down notes frantically, apparently intent on trying to write down the teacher's every word. He smiled as he realized that she was using the plain black pen that he had given her the day before.

That morning, he and Riku had been pleasantly surprised to find that all of the people they had met yesterday were being openly amiable. Roxas had greeted them with a big smile and helped Sora find his locker again, which, he was embarrassed to admit, he couldn't remember the location of. Xion had run up to them as soon as her eyes landed on them, and looped her arm through Riku's, leading him off to their shared first period class. And Namine, before Itami started his never-ending lecture, had waved the pen he gave her in greeting, and he returned the gesture with a quiet laugh, and a wave of the black and white striped pen he carried with his binder. So far, it seemed as though they had fallen into the right crowd.

"Atari!" Itami's irritated voice pulled him out of his dream-like state, and he snapped to attention, accidentally pushing his unopened binder and various pens off of his desk in the process. He flushed a deep red and scrambled to clean the mess as a soft chuckle spread throughout the classroom. Namine bent to help him pick up several pens as well, and he grinned sheepishly in gratitude.

Returning to his seat, he composed himself before replying, "Yes, Mr. Itami?"

The teacher blinked rapidly, eyes wide. Then, after a moment's hesitation, an evil smirk transformed his face and he retorted, "Nothing. I was going to say, 'You better stay awake during my class or be prepared to face the consequences', but it seems as if you've figured that one out by yourself… Very graceful, by the way."

The class laughed and Sora's face burned red-hot. He sighed as he was saved by the bell. As students collected their belongings and rushed out the door, Itami barked out the night's homework, and Sora made a mental note.

On his way out, he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to find Namine smiling brightly.

"It's fine, Sky," she assured him. "Itami makes fun of everybody. Take Hayner for example." She pointed subtly to a blond boy in camouflage pants, brown eyes focused on the zipper of his book bag, which was apparently stuck. "He makes jokes about Hayner's hair every time he sees him." She giggled, and added, "And not without good reason, either." Sora raised his eyebrows as he inspected his hair, which looked scraggly, as though it hadn't seen shampoo or a brush in days.

The giggling girl grabbed Sora's hand and dragged him out of the classroom, where Roxas was waiting once again. His grin dimmed a bit as his eyes flickered briefly to their joined hands, but his wistful expression quickly passed (almost as quickly as Namine ripped her hand out of Sora's grasp), and he threw his arm around Sora's shoulders.

"Hey, Nami, Sky!" He nodded at each person, respectively, before the trio started in the direction of their next class. The three chatted genially about their teachers and homework before Namine went off in the direction of her next class, Math, as the boys continued on their way to English.

Roxas was entering the English classroom, imitating the Chemistry teacher, when Sora first saw him. It wasn't likely that the boy could be missed, really. He stood tall above the rest of his classmates, even Sora, the twenty-year-old man. Pale skin stretched over long, toned limbs, and the mass of fire red hair atop his head was impossible to overlook. Lower, attentive green eyes shone bright, inspecting Roxas and himself as they settled themselves into their seats. Standing up and stretching to an impossible height for a high school student, he yawned and strolled over to where they were seated, sitting himself in the seat in front of Roxas. He grinned at the blond boy, but received no warm greetings.

"Where the hell were you yesterday?" he demanded.

The redhead smirked and shrugged. "You know," he said vaguely, "here and there."

Roxas glared, and an awkward silence filled the air. Sora gulped, and arranged his pens nervously atop his desk. A few moments later, though, Roxas broke out into an affectionate smile, and he laughed.

"Good to see you, man," he said, patting the other boy on the shoulder.

"You too, Roxy." He nodded his head in Sora's direction and asked, "Who's the shrimp?"

_Shrimp?_

Roxas rolled his eyes, but answered, "This is my friend, Sky. He's a Junior. New this year. Don't scare him away just yet. I like this one, okay?"

The boy smiled innocently. "Of course not, Roxy. He's your plaything. Got it."

_Plaything?_

"Sky, this sorry excuse for a man is Axel, my best friend." Axel beamed at Roxas' introduction, so Roxas added scathingly, "Lucky me, right?"

Before Sora had a chance to cut in, Axel yelled, "Damn right, kid."

Finally, as if realizing that Sora had a voice as well, Axel turned to him, acknowledging his presence. Sora noticed two black upside-down triangles tattooed beneath his eyes. "Why are you even in this class, Mr. Junior-Man?" Axel asked.

"It's _Sky_! My name is Sky," he reminded the redhead, and then shrugged. "And I don't know. I'm good at English. It's kind of my thing."

Axel raised his eyebrows and made no attempt to hide his mirth. "English was my thing once, too, in about seventh grade. Now my thing is eating pizza and scoring hot dates." He smiled lecherously. Looking thoughtful for a moment, he added, "And I have a thing with fire…"

Slightly disturbed and completely offended, Sora was grateful to hear the bell ring, and Mr. Sasaki call them all to attention, and ordered them back to their proper seats.

He yelled out the roll call, stopping to shake his head a bit when calling Axel's name, and muttering something about his lack of discipline.

Sora realized, all too clearly, that Mr. Sasaki was a scary, scary man. Especially when giving out an assignment.

"_THIS_… will be the first test of your intellect and ambition. _THIS_… will tell you whether you are cut out for this course. _THIS_… is your first graded project."

He began to walk across the front of the classroom, periodically glaring at the fidgety teens before him. "VERBS!" The room seemed to shake. "They DO. They ARE. Without a verb, one does NOTHING. And if one does NOTHING," he said, his gaze shooting in Axel's direction, "then one BECOMES NOTHING!" Mr. Sasaki watched them all accusingly. "ALL OF YOU...are currently nothing." A few of the girls in the class raised their hands to protest, but the teacher stopped them with his hand, and continued on. "HOWEVER...if you can properly figure out how to use verbs to YOUR advantage...then you may be able to save yourself from the CANNIBALISTIC rat race that is the WORLD. Only YOU," he exclaimed, pointing at a random student quivering in their seat, "can keep the other savage creatures from tearing away at your soft flesh. Only your intuition, my words of wisdom, and your blind faith in me, will save you. DO YOU WANT SALVATION?" Everyone nodded like bobble head dolls. "Then come with me! Do as I ask of you: Impart what little knowledge you all hold. Tell me how one can use the power of verbs to SURVIVE!" He cleared his throat. "And have it done in two weeks."

Sora sat, stunned, unable to believe that they were being assigned such a large project on the second day of school.

"And CLASS!" The students watched him. "Complete the assignment...or you shall be subject to wear the Semblance of Shame! The Facade of Failure! The Mask of Mortification!" He cleared his throat once more as the bell rang. "THAT...is all."

Every student let out the breath they had been holding since the beginning of his speech, and the classroom emptied at a record-breaking speed.

Once outside of the room, Sora leaned against a wall and sighed. Turning to look at Roxas and Axel, he whined, "I can't believe we have to do a project already! It's only the second day of school. Is this high school or boot camp? Because let me tell you, I did _not_ sign up for boot camp."

Axel threw his head back and laughed. "Calm down, Princess. We have two whole weeks to do it," he reminded Sora once he composed himself.

"For the love of God… _Princess_?!" The nicknames, he decided, were rapidly getting old.

Axel shrugged, lifting an eyebrow. "Well," he stated, "if the glass slipper fits…"

Sora stood, silent and peeved beyond all belief, and then turned swiftly and headed towards his Chemistry class.

Even while retreating, Sora distinctly heard a soft snicker and a call of, "Later, Princess!"

**-x-x-x-**

The relief Sora felt when eighth period lunch came around was immeasurable. His day had passed in a blur of anger and humiliation, with each hour inducing more horror than the last. After he had dropped and broken test tubes filled with carbonic acid in Chemistry, but before tripping in the hallway on his way to Spanish, he decided that Riku was the one to blame for the day he was having. He was the one, after all, who had woken him in such a terrible manner. Everyone knows that your morning sets the mood for the rest of your day!

He met up with Roxas once more, exchanging pleasantries as they made their way to the cafeteria. Sora told him about the catastrophe that seemed to be following him throughout the day, and regretted it a moment later, when the blond boy began to mock him mercilessly for them. He sighed. What had he been expecting?

Learning his lesson, Sora stayed quiet as they bought their lunches, and pretended to listen as Roxas droned on about teachers and classes. Usually, Sora would have been interested in what his friend had to say. But today, at this moment, he wasn't. He was too busy scanning the high school crowd for his agent (and _former _friend), Riku, to listen.

By the time they had reached the table where Xion was waiting, Riku was still nowhere to be found. Sora growled and glared at his food as though it were to blame for his misfortune.

"…Sky?"

Sora snapped his head back up to look at his friend.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "What was that?"

Roxas frowned, but repeated, "I asked what you thought of Axel."

"Who's Axel?" a silky, familiar voice asked from somewhere behind them.

Sora turned just in time to see Riku reach out and hit him in the back of the head, and plunk himself in the seat right next to the younger man. Sora glared and opened his mouth to list the reasons why he was angry with his agent, but stopped himself, realizing that it would be better to confront him in private.

Shaking his head, he answered, "Axel is Roxas' friend. And he's a total jerk!" He huffed as he crossed his arms across his chest, glaring once more at the burger on his tray.

Roxas smirked. "Yeah, most people feel that way."

"What did this guy do, exactly?" Riku asked, intrigued.

"He made up an… endearing nick name for me." Sora informed him.

"Yo, Princess."

Axel ruffled Sora's hair before moving to sit between Roxas and Xion on the other side of the table.

"Axel," Sora groaned, "Please don't call me that."

"Call you what?" he asked innocently, popping a french fry into his mouth.

"Princess."

"Why? You said it yourself. It's… endearing." Axel snickered.

"Sarcasm! I was being sarcastic!" Sora threw his hands into the air in frustration.

Axel shook his head disapprovingly. "You need to learn to pick your battles, kid. This is one you're going to lose."

Riku chuckled, a suspicious glint in his eyes that made Sora feel uneasy. "He's right, you know."

Sora sighed, giving up and returning to his cheeseburger.

As the others chatted gleefully about this person or the other, Sora moped, alone with his burger, trying to ignore the way Riku was looking at him like he had just thought of something that Sora would not like one bit.

**-x-x-x-**

He was right. This is not something he wanted to hear. Especially not after such a horrid day.

Being an intelligent and cunning man, Riku had waited until Sora had let his guard down to bring it up, though. He had brought Sora back to his house after school, tossed him a beer, and set them up on the couch with a bowl of popcorn and some football game flickering uselessly on the screen, neither of them being truly interested in it.

And that's when he had suggested it. He had said it nonchalantly, as if discussing the score of the game or the weather outside.

"So, I think you should make Axel fall in love with you."

Mid-sip, Sora spluttered, choking on his beer, and coughed violently.

"You want me to what?!" he demanded between coughs.

Riku shrugged and smacked him on the back, helping him dislodge whatever liquid was stuck in his throat. "Calm down," he ordered his friend, "I'm just thinking… It would, you know… Make for a good novel, don't you think?"

Sora's eyes widened as his jaw hung open. "N-novel?" he stuttered.

"Yeah," Riku started, sipping his beer and leaning back on the couch, looking at the television thoughtfully. "You don't think it would be interesting? You could write about your experience in high school as a twenty-year-old man undercover as a sixteen-year-old boy. Write about how you made the badass senior of Twilight High fall in love with _Sky." _As he continued to talk through his ideas, he got more excited, starting to speak quickly as his eyes lit up. "Sora, you have what other authors only dream about – true experience. You don't have to imagine what Sky Atari is like, or what he would do to get Axel to fall in love with him, because you _are_ him. You _are_ your main character, while at the same time, he's completely fictional. This is a huge opportunity. This… This could be big." Riku looked at Sora, an excited grin spreading across his face.

Sora peered down at his beer, thoughtful. He knew Riku was right. The author inside of him was already itching for a pen and paper – dying to write Sky's – _his_ - story. It would instantly cure his wretched writer's block. He could have another best-seller on his hands.

But then again, another part of him was screaming out in protest. It would be wrong to use people like that. If the book became popular, all of the friends he made at Twilight High would think he was just using them – and to some extent, they would be right. And Axel… would he even be able to make the jerk fall in love with him? Did he even want Axel to be in love with him?

He looked over at his best friend's face, so excited, so ready to back Sora up through the entire experience, but Sora had to wonder if he had even considered the fact that their new friends would end up feeling betrayed? Did he even care?

"What about our friends?" Sora asked. "They won't exactly like that I used them to write a novel…"

Instantly, the excitement in Riku's face faded, and he became a portrait of sincerity. This was his "Agent Face," the one he used to convince production companies that he was the real deal.

"Sora, no matter what the circumstances, you can't forget that we aren't high school kids. We are grown men with careers and steady incomes. All these kids need to worry about at the moment are curfews and exams. We, however, need to pay rent, keep our refrigerators stocked, cure writer's block, and on top of that, Sora, we will temporarily have to worry about keeping up appearances at high school to make sure nobody finds out who we really are. Nowhere on our list of responsibilities is to worry about whether or not these kids will like what you write about them in your novel." Riku paused, gauging Sora's reaction. When the boy failed to look up and meet Riku's gaze, the agent continued, "You need to do what's best for Sora Aoi, not what's best for Sky Atari."

Sora coughed uncomfortably and turned away from Riku, grabbing a Chemistry textbook and a binder from his backpack, and moving to the dining room table to do his homework. Riku's eyes trailed him, burning holes into the back of his head.

Rolling his eyes, Sora sighed a heavy, put-upon sigh, and said, "Fine. I'll do it."

Sora didn't have to turn around to know Riku was throwing his hands up in the air in victory, silently cheering to himself.

So much for serious Riku. Nice to know he still existed.

**-x-x-x-**

_Don't know the reason why_

_Meet me in the check out stand_

_See who can be the lover man_

_Conscience bleeding in a song_

_Guilty as the day is long_

_Goodbye_

_

* * *

  
_

**Authors' Note**: Hey there! Chapter three is ready, warm, and served on a rather attractive silver platter! :D This chapter was planned quite a bit better than the last one. And as result, we believe we've created a rather epic continuation of our storyline! Whoo! Axel's here! All right! :)

Real quick "thank you" to anyone who might be paying our little story any attention.

**All those who have us on alert:**

Chronos Mephistopheles

iShiznitch

khfreak116

Little Britt

Naokiru Michiyuki

Inyx Dawn

**Our Reviewers:**

Naokiru Michiyuki

xXxSmidgexXx

iShiznitch

**And our two Faves:**

Ocearna

You are all a hundred different kinds of wonderful! We appreciate your patronage! :3

See you all another chapter!


	4. Seduction in Leather Pants

**Authors' Note: We know, we know, it's been eleven months since we updated. Trust us, we are just as ashamed of ourselves as you are peeved at us. But before you guys serve our heads on a silver platter, we'd just like to thank everyone who has continued to give our story some attention. It isn't wildly popular, or getting twenty reviews a chapter, but we're fine with that. We started this story just in the name of good fun, and so far, we really do love the story. Those of you who have dealt with our erratic updates and general chaos, you have no idea how much we really appreciate it.**

**On that note, we'd like to dedicate this chapter to StupifiedNarutard, because of the awesome review she left us. By the time we read the review, we were halfway through this chapter, and it made us feel so much better to know that we must be doing something right. So here's to you, StupifiedNarutard! Thanks so much!**

**We'd also like to thank our other reviewers:  
kingdomheartsforevs  
Sweet Wisteria  
FabioandRichard4Ever**

**We really appreciate it, guys! Also, thanks to all of you who alerted or favorited this story and/or our account. : 3**

**Finally, before we go on to the chapter, we'd also like to say that while we realize our updates are few and far between, we currently have no intentions of abandoning this fic. We really have grown fond of it, and it would be a shame to lose it just because our lives are fairly hectic. So please bear with us! Even though various amounts of time may pass, we DO PLAN on continuing the story!  
**

**Ending Song: Hold On – Acceptance**

**Now, on to the long-awaited chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

**

_If I have learned one thing in my life, it's that a twenty-year-old man should not be in high school. Knowing this, I often wonder how it is that I let myself be talked into going back to that very place. I always come up with the same three reasons: writer's block, scheming agents, and lots and lots of leather pants._

_It's a long story. One that's not really necessary for you to hear. All you need to know is that I, a legal adult, was coerced into going to high school under a fake identity. My agent, Riku, gave me green contacts and black hair dye and called me Sky Atari._

_Riku, nervous that the process would be made void by my lack of social skills, decided to enroll himself at Twilight High along with me. I knew that he would be trouble the very second that he saw Axel._

_Who's Axel? Axel is a senior at that school, and most students idolize him. I wasn't one of them, but we'll get to that later. It wasn't hard to see why they would, though. He stands around six foot four, and sports the wildest red hair that I have ever seen. He has bright green eyes, pale skin, and an attitude that reflects his awareness of how every set of eyes in any given room would trail after him. To top it all off, the guy has two black tattoos under his eyes of upside down triangles. He is, I suppose, the epitome of "cool" for these kids._

_Maybe if he hadn't started calling me Princess about five minutes after I first met him, I might have felt that draw to him that everyone else felt. But he did, so I didn't._

_For the sole reason that I disliked him, my agent, and supposed best friend, decided that I should make him fall in love with me, and write a novel about it. Cruel, I know, but adults who are reading this book will understand that people will do practically anything to save their job if it's being threatened. And to the kids reading this who have never worked a day in their life and still rely heavily on their parents' money, I suggest you put this book down right now, and pick it up in another ten years or so._

_So that's the history of this novel. That's how it came to be that a grown man is trying to seduce an eighteen-year-old boy in order to save his career._

* * *

"Sora?"

The aforementioned man rolled his eyes and rested his head in his hands. Sometimes he wondered if his agent really wanted him to get work done.

"Yes, Riku?" the peeved novelist called back.

Riku peeked his head inside Sora's office and asked, "Is it okay if I borrow some pajama pants? I didn't bring any with me." Sure, he had phrased it as a question, but Sora knew better. Riku was already out of sight, and Sora could hear footsteps heading towards his bedroom.

"Why didn't you bring pajamas?" the brunet yelled, "Could it be that I didn't invite you to stay the night? Come to think of it, did I even invite you over at all?"  
He heard a soft chuckle, and when no other response came, Sora sighed and tried to get back to work. His eyes scanned quickly over the few pages he had written, and he had just clicked the save button when the door burst open once more.

Turning, Sora was almost shocked by what he saw. Riku, clothed only in a pair of his baggiest sweatpants, nudged the door open further with his foot. His arms were full of knickknacks that Sora immediately recognized as his own.

"What the hell, Sora?" Riku shouted as he laid the items on the desk Sora had been working on. He looked through the belongings, throwing some carelessly to the side. Sora dodged a feather duster that had been flung his way and watched helplessly as Riku tore through his things.

"Should I bother asking why you took my stuff from my room?" Sora asked, not really expecting any kind of legitimate answer.

Riku responded with a blank stare, and lifted a handkerchief that had the younger man's initials embroidered on it.

Embarrassed, Sora snatched the handkerchief from Riku and shoved it in his pocket.

"Alright. Listen here, Sora," Riku started, a grim expression clouding his features, "I know how much money you make. Unless there is something I don't know about, then you do not have the money to be buying this stuff!"

Sora opened his mouth, ready to argue that Riku had no right to regulate what he could and could not buy, but Riku cut him off by not so subtly clearing his throat. "And," he continued, "if you do, then can I borrow twenty dollars?" His agent grinned at him, hand held out expectantly.

"…No."

Riku's grin turned into a scowl, and he picked up a magic eight ball that had been lying, forgotten, among Sora's possessions.

"Oh, magic eight ball," Riku started melodramatically, "does my dear friend Sora have twenty dollars he can lend me?" He shook the toy vigorously, and his eyes lit up when he read its answer. "It seems you do have money for me! I'll be needing it as soon as possible. You know, bills to pay and such."

Sora groaned and rolled his eyes at his friend. "You're not getting any money from me," he stated before grabbing his belongings from their various positions around the room. "I'm going to sleep. If you really must stay the whole night, the couch is free." He nodded in Riku's direction and went to his room, more than ready for the day to be at its end.

He should have known it wouldn't be so easy. The moment he had turned off the lights and settled into a comfortable position in his bed, his door flung open and slammed itself against the adjacent wall. The room flooded with light from the hallway, and Sora, taken by surprise, jumped into a sitting position and flailed his arms to protect himself from some yet unseen entity.

He was shoved back onto his bed and felt a painful weight settle on his abdomen. He opened his mouth to scream, but before any noise could be made, he recognized the intruder and source of the weight. It was Riku, of course, who had taken the liberty of sitting on Sora's stomach. Groaning, and trying to calm his racing heart, Sora attempted to push Riku off of himself to no avail. The man looked like an over-eager puppy, and beamed at Sora as if he hadn't just nearly sent the man into cardiac arrest.

"I. Am. A genius," he declared.

Sora rubbed his eyes, and snapped, "What the hell are you talking about? Get off of me, you whale!"

He was completely ignored, as was usual when Riku had something on his mind. "The novel! I'm a genius! What you've written so far? Perfection. It's comedy. It's romance. It's a best seller in the making! How did you ever survive without me?" The man had taken hold of Sora's shoulders and began shaking him, for no apparent reason other than to irritate his friend. And irritate him it did. With all of the strength he possessed, Sora took hold of Riku's arms and shoved him away, successfully rolling him to the other side of the queen-sized bed.

"There are two problems with this. One, that you burst into my room, apparently just trying to terrify the life out of me, and two, that you were looking though my computer!" Sora shouted, truly angry with Riku.

Riku's smile dimmed a bit, but he was otherwise undeterred from his joy.

Sora sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "On a separate note… Thanks, I guess."

His agent grinned as if he had never received a better compliment. For some reason, it bothered Sora.

"Okay. Now I'm going to sleep, and I swear to God, if you ever pull that stunt again, I'm finding a new agent." Sora pointed angrily at Riku as he delivered his empty threat. "Stop bothering me now, okay? Go to sleep." The novelist turned on his side and closed his eyes.

"Alright. Night, Sora," Riku whispered before he tugged the covers up to his chin. He closed his eyes and yawned, stretching out his legs. A comfortable silence surrounded the two men.

"…Not here, you moron! Get the hell out of my bed!"

* * *

"My best friend's hot, my best friend's hot..."

Sora pulled his bed covers tighter over his head, his body curling into himself. It was too early for this. Too early for him.

"My best friend's hot, my best friend's hot..."

He pressed his ear hard against the pillow. He stuffed a finger into his other ear. Somehow, even though the noise was muffled...it didn't disappear. And no, the din of the blaring blow-dryer was not the noise he was trying to eradicate.

"My best friend's hot, MY BEST FRIEND'S – "

"WHY DON'T YOU SING THE REST OF THE SONG!"

Riku emerged from the bathroom door and attempted to walk to the bed where Sora now sat, anger blatantly splayed across his face. The cord of the hairdryer stopped him as it pulled taut, forcing him to stumble backwards, stare at the outlet curiously, then shrug before continuing to fluff his long, silver locks.

"The rest of the song isn't relevant."

"Isn't it about someone being in love with their attractive best friend?" Sora said, his voice nearly trembling with aggravation.

Riku's face fell for a moment. A wide grin soon followed, and a hearty laugh after that. "Oh my God...you think I'm singin' about you?" He chuckled again, in that condescending way that only Rikus can. "Dude, I'm my OWN best friend. And I'm beyond hot." He pointed his blow-dryer at Sora, playfully powering it on and off, as if shooting bursts of hot air at him. "Don't be too disappointed."

"Trust me. I'm nowhere near disappointed. I'm thrilled and relieved." Sora threw his legs out from beneath the sheets, letting his bare feet touch the floor.

"You don't look it. Your face... I could create a new Crayola color, and it'd be the shade of that blush across your face."

Sora rubbed his eyes roughly. "Shut up."

"I'll call it..." Riku began while blowing out the ends of his hair, "'Cranky Crimson'."

"Quit it."

"Maybe 'Spiteful Scarlet'...?"

"Are you really – "

"'Vexed Vermilion' perhaps...?"

"Why are you so obnoxious?" Sora grabbed a dirty sock hanging from the edge of a nearby open drawer, twisted it into a ball, and pelted it at Riku with as much force as he could muster. The mini-projectile somehow managed to knock the hairdryer loose from Riku's hand, and he fumbled for the briefest moment to hold onto it. He reaffirmed his grip, then shot his brunet friend a rather displeasing look.

"Someone's kind of pissy in the morning..."

"If you woke up to YOURSELF, randomly singing songs by squeaky adolescents about unrequited love that doesn't mean anything...you'd be kind of pissy too." He slammed the open drawer shut and stood. "And shut that thing off..." He shuffled toward the bathroom and snatched the appliance out of Riku's hand before yanking the plug from the outlet. He tossed it into a cabinet under his sink, then grabbed his toothbrush from off the counter.

"So," Riku began as Sora added toothpaste to his toothbrush and started to take part in basic human hygienics, "are you ready to seduce Axel?"

He paused for a second, but was hardly put off and continued to brush his teeth. "I'm thinking the best approach might be to play hard-to-get. You know how guys eat that up." Sora grunted in response, though whether it was negative or positive was up for debate. "And a special treat for you, now that I think about it..." Riku hurried out of the bathroom as Sora washed out his mouth, cleaned off his toothbrush, and propped it up on a corner of the counter. He began to wander out the door when Riku reappeared, a pair of leather pants in his hands.

"...What are those...?"

"Pants. Of a leathery material."

"Aw, no," Sora whined. "I thought we said we weren't going to...Where did you..."

"You didn't think I was going to leave that store without them, did you? As much grief as you gave me for them, you looked damn good, and I had a feeling you might need them one day."

Sora raised an eyebrow in question.

"What?"

"We didn't leave that store with a receipt...a shopping bag...nothing..."

Riku snorted. "Of course there's no receipt."

"...What are you saying? You didn't pay for it?"

"The hell I didn't. Damn thing was overpriced." Riku grinned proudly.

"Y-you stole the pants? But how...why...you stole them!"

"I've never stolen anything before in my life. I borrow things. And I'm borrowing these for you."

"Did you 'borrow' that car we've been driving, too!"

"THAT was a gift. Relax." Riku shook out the pants, holding them up close to Sora's terror-stricken face. "Now, hurry up and squeeze yourself into these." He eyed the piece of clothing up and down and muttered, " I gotta sneak 'em back into the store by tonight." He caught Sora's gaze; it had plummeted into that of pure distress. "I'm sorry. Did I say 'sneak'? I meant 'return in a completely normal and legal way'."

"Riku – "

"Hey, do you want to impress Axel or not?"

"I don't! You know I don't!" Sora threw up his hands.

"No." Riku shoved the leather garment into Sora's arms, smacking the back of his hand against Sora's chest and leaning in, staring the younger boy in the eyes. "What I know is that you are living off Chef Boyardee and Cinnamon Toast Crunch in this freezing apartment, and that the only way you're going to be able to afford the internet connection you're using to play Internet poker with some blond buff guy from Finland is if you either A) continue to steal some of your neighbor's Wi-Fi – and I promise you, he will notice – or B) write a damn novel so you can go back to sustaining yourself like a big boy. Get it together, Aoi." He flicked Sora's forehead and walked down the hall, his hair swishing behind him. Sora gripped the godforsaken pants in his shaking hands and groaned. Riku was a lot of things...but mostly, he was very persuasive, very aware of his physical attributes, and very, very right.

The benefits of having it all.

"Sky! You look..."

"Whatever you're about to say, Roxas... just don't say it. Just don't."

Roxas shook his head. "Fine then. Sky, you look like a fat-ass. I'll dial Jenny Craig for you, as I bet your fingers are too big for the keypad. Xion, call 911. We need someone to get him out of those pants before he cuts off all circulation to his non-existent – "

"Roxas!" She walked over to Sora and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "If you ask me, Sky, you look really cute... I'd have never known you had an ass if you didn't wear this." She grinned widely.

"Uh...thank you...?" Roxas approached Sora's side, a smile on his lips, seemingly genuine, even despite his previous comments.

"You know I was joking, right?" he asked. "As a general statement, I think you look alright. I mean, the girls here don't seem to mind." His eyes swept the crowd of students passing by them in the hallways. Sora's attention fell on a group gathered at some lockers down the hall, and his eyes widened. A small number of girls stood, congregated and giggling, their gazes blatantly focused on his attire. One, an unusually bubbly girl with long blonde locks, stared with intent, looking him up and down before waving at him. His face flushed crimson, and he proceeded to slam his head against the nearest locker.

BANG. BANG. BANG. BANG.

"Sky...? Are you feeling okay?"

"Ow..."

"Since Xion won't ask...uh...was there a point to any of that self-mutilation?"

Sora pressed his forehead against the cool locker. "I feel so stupid."

"But you look so hot!" said Riku from down the hall as he strutted close, a too-easy smirk on his face. Sora could feel his soul packing a suitcase and flying away, because why would it stay when Lucifer was fast approaching? Riku held onto Sora's shoulder tightly, nodding with approval as the boy shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "The form-fitting white dress shirt is adorable. And is this a little tie?" he asked, chuckling while pulling on it. "And I especially love these pants." He slid a hand down Sora's thigh, making the younger male jump. "Oh my God... is that real leather?"

"Riku... I hate you. So shut up." Sora jerked Riku's hand off of him.

"If you say so." He winked in that disgustingly snarky way that he would when he felt incredibly proud of himself. Sora saw no reason for his agent to feel so self-satisfied. Sure, he had won for the moment, but what about when Riku would follow him to lunch and ask for a couple of french fries? He'd give Riku two. And when Riku would start to get pissy because, hey, Sora's skimping on the faux-French goodness that is a fry, Sora would smile and think, "HA! A 'couple' implies TWO fries, you whale!"

Yeah.

That would show him.

The bastard.

The stares became no more bearable as the school day went on. While others might beg for the attention, he found himself rather fearful of it. Everything felt so concentrated on him, on his appearance, and it led his mind to wander to all sorts of raging thoughts:

_"This was such a dumb idea."_

_"I'm going to strangle Riku."_

_"No, I won't. Too predictable. I'll ruffle his hair."_

_"Oh my God, my hair... It must look like shit."_

_"Did I shave this morning?"_

_"Crap... I look like crap... I feel like crap... I hope that's what Axel's attracted to."_

_"Like I give a flying wombat what Axel is into."_

Smiles and friendly gazes did nothing to assuage his unhappiness. He was a baby fish, moved from the fishbowl to the Big Tank, where judgmental high school students watched with eyes ablaze and teeth at the ready; his weaknesses could only be magnified by the distortions of that Tank.

Oh, how the little angelfish feared the lingering piranha...

Lunch only reminded him how hungry those piranha were. If it were possible to shrink to a microscopic size and hide, he would have. If he could suddenly become a bit of pollen in the wind, he'd opt for that. And if only he could become a clown. Everyone despises clowns. That'd keep the strange looks of interest and infatuation away. Bring on the hatred!

He plopped himself down at his lunch table, and winced at the pain he felt as the top of his leather pants pressed deep into his stomach. Roxas, Riku, and Xion soon appeared, all well aware of Sora's apparent displeasure.

"If you don't like the pants," Roxas started as he made himself comfortable at the table, "then you shouldn't have worn them. That simple."

"Roxas has it right.," said Riku. "It's not like anyone forced you to wear them."

If looks could kill, then Sora's angry face might have given Riku a number of small bruises. A+ for effort, though.

Then Axel appeared. Or, rather, his shadow did, hovering above Sora's head, casting itself on top of him and laying claim to the table upon which it rested. Axel hesitated for a moment. Though Sora's back was facing the redhead, he could sense from the looks his friends were giving that Axel's eyes were roaming his interesting choice of clothing. The knowledge made the hairs on the back of his neck stand (or they would have, if they weren't being strangled by Riku's little demon tie). But the moment soon passed, and Axel situated himself in the empty space beside Sora.

"Nice...shirt." He practically laughed the words out. "Very becoming on you, Princess."

"Axel, I really don't – " Sora cringed as Riku's foot collided with his shin. He glanced at his silver-haired friend, who dipped his head and shot a look Axel's way. Be nice, it said. Be nice or I'll drown you in the sink. Sora sighed. "Thank you...Axel." His eyes returned to Riku, whose eyebrow was raised, like he were waiting for something else. Sora turned back to Axel...and smiled. When he saw his agent's face next, he seemed generally pleased.

Lunch conversation proceeded as usual. It appeared only to stall for a moment when some guy with dirty blonde hair arrived at the table, a stack of papers in his hands. "Hey, are you Sky Atari?" he asked, his green eyes set on Sora's sullen self. He hadn't spoken aloud in some time, and made no motion to suggest that he'd start then. Sora nodded an affirmative, and the newcomer smiled – it seemed so casual and easy, and Sora relaxed in his presence.

"Oh, nice! I'm Demyx." He reached out a hand for Sora to shake, but the pile of papers began to slip from his hold, and he managed to make an awkward save before they all fell to the floor. He smiles again, but it was clearly out of some degree of embarrassment. "Uh, so, Professor Xemnas sent me to give back these physics assessments we took yesterday. How fast he graded these is scary! Kinda like everything else about him... Uh, but anyway, here's yours, man." Demyx thumbed through the stack with speed before pulling out a single sheet and handing it over to Sora.

"Thanks, Demyx."

"No problem." Demyx nodded in acknowledgment of Axel's presence, tossed another paper to him and Xion, and ran off, clearly spurred to complete the task by fear. Sora inspected his paper. "Damn..." he muttered. Xion leaned over and peeked at the assessment.

"Wow... Epic fail."

"Did you catch whatever Roxas has? Because if that was you trying to make me feel better, then it was an EPIC FAIL."

"Sorry..." Sora dropped the sheet from his grasp and let it hit the table.

"This is stupid... When am I ever going to use physics in life? Honestly? It's so pointless." He couldn't explain just how true his statement was, but he had experience, and if physics had ever been useful to him, perhaps he would not be trying to defeat writer's block by posing as a teenage boy in high school.

"Well, if you ever decide to be a physicist..."

"Roxas..."

Roxas chuckled. "I'm shutting up, dude."

Axel viewed the quiz in question with half a glance. "Yikes. Looks like a disaster." Sora stopped mid-pout and quickly grabbed Axel's assessment.

"...This is a joke, right?" he asked in hushed awe, his eyes fixed on the bright red A on the stark white paper.

Axel smirked. "What? I can't be good at school stuff, Princess?" He lowered his head. "Or, you wouldn't expect me to be good at anything? Right?" Sora's mouth hung open as his mind worked double-time to concoct a response. He didn't want to admit the truth – that Axel being proficient at something as hard as physics was, to him, laughable – but he hated to think of lying. Oh, the irony of it all...

"Passed, I guess, Axel?" Riku asked, though it was obvious. Sora exhaled, happy that Riku had picked up on the tension in the air. He kept his eyes on the table. "Looks like Sky might benefit from a little help from you, eh?" He laughed at his own comment, sure, but Sora didn't need to look at Riku to know that he was hinting, trying to jump-start their little plan. Sora swallowed the lump that had slowly been growing in his throat. The thought of giving up what little self-respect he had left... Was this worth it? He looked at Riku.

Judging by the expectant countenance he encountered, it really didn't matter if it was worth it or not. He was doing this. Sora took a deep breath.

"Yeah... I could really use some help with this... Maybe..."

"Are you asking me, Sky?"

Sora coughed. "You...said my name...?" Axel had no response, and remained still as he awaited an answer. "I... I guess I am. Asking, that is." Sora could feel heat beginning to bloom under his skin, and it was spreading from deep within his chest to his limbs, fingertips, toes – the sensation was starting to fill him up. The process was hastened by the fact that Axel still made no effort to react to Sora's inquiry. He merely sat beside him, his green eyes unfocused and blurry beneath the fluorescent lights of the cafeteria. Sora nearly choked as he tried to force his voice to cooperate.

"I'd...really like the help, Axel. If you're not busy..." An awkward smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he stuttered along. "It might be...uh...fun... And I'd...really appreciate it."

"Meet me in the library tomorrow right after school."

"...Huh?" Axel hadn't even looked at him, and now he was standing from his seat, a tall, looming, dangerous ghost of a man.

"Don't be late. I have other stuff to do, and I can't miss 'em." The redhead was up and out of the lunchroom before Sora could even reply.

"I give that a low '2' on Riku's Scale of Seduction," the silver-haired agent whispered into Sora's ear. "But you're in there! Now, just ramp things up to a moderate '5' tomorrow afternoon, and we'll be well on our way." He began to turn away, but came back. "Oh, by the way, obviously, this new development necessitates that I come over after school today to prep you for tomorrow. We'll stop by 7-11 and buy us some burritos." He grinned.

Sora groaned. Being such a pushover was getting old faster than his grandmother... But Riku knows best... right?

...Right?

_Is this game the perfect test?  
Do we alter  
What we are  
Who we honor  
Playing with people's hearts?_


End file.
